


Your Lights are Shining Brightly

by idra



Series: 13 Days of Christmas (2017) [7]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Christmas, Decorating, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-23
Updated: 2017-12-23
Packaged: 2019-02-19 04:33:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,230
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13116111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/idra/pseuds/idra
Summary: Steve wants to decorate his tree, but his first attempt is not what he'd originally planned.





	Your Lights are Shining Brightly

**Author's Note:**

> Day 7 of 13! I am catching up! Sort of. I need to write four more fics to be where I'm actually supposed to be, but I can do that. 
> 
> Prompt for this one is Decorating Gone Badly.

Steve steps back from the tree and makes a face. “Wow,” he says with a sigh. “This is kind of horrible. I’m an artist, for goodness sake. How come I can’t decorate a stupid tree?” He’ll just have to start over again in the morning.

He slumps on the couch and stares at the blank screen of the TV, wishing he’d taken up Nat’s offer to help him decorate. He thought he could do it on his own, since he was an artist. And he’d had a plan for how he wanted it decorated, but Bucky had told him it was a stupid idea to just stick to red and gold. Something along the lines of Steve taking his obsession to far. So, Steve had gotten all different colours and he hated it. It was ugly and looked like a five year old had decorated the tree. 

He glances over when the doorbell rings. “Come in.” 

“Really?” Tony walks in, shaking his head, hands full of bags. “You just... leave your door unlocked.”

Steve stands up, smiling as his cheeks flush. It’s not like Bucky was completely wrong about Steve’s obsession, so maybe it’s just as well that Bucky had talked him out of the red and gold decorations. “Who’s going to challenge Captain America?” 

“True enough,” Tony says, holding out the bags. “Do you seriously live in this hole in the wall? Steve, I could get you someplace ten times this nice. If you’d just let me...” 

“Tony, we’ve talked about this. I don’t want your money.”

“Steve...” Tony sighs. It’s a long-fought argument and they’re both a little tired of it. “Okay. Fine. Here. I bought you some Christmas decorations.” Tony eyes the tree. “I would’ve figured you for having your tree decorated a little more... artistically.” 

“Yeah. I...” Steve takes the bags and opens them, smiling a little. It’s all red and gold ornaments, lights, garland. “I hated what it looked like. Bucky suggested I just mix and match, but I really wanted to have a theme.” 

“I thought maybe you’d like red, white, and blue, but Natasha threatened to kick my ass. She said you would prefer red and gold, which I think is awesome, but... I didn’t think it was your style.” 

“I think red and gold are... perfect Christmas colours.” Steve smiles at him.

“Great. Then let’s get those... scary decorations taken off. Then I’ll help you get these superior decorations on.”

Steve laughs and nods. “There’s a plastic bin to put the decorations in.” 

“Let’s get to work.” 

An hour later, Steve laughs as he and Tony try to extricate themselves from each other. They’d somehow wrapped themselves up in the garland and lights and now, they’re tangled together. Steve’s afraid of breaking the light strands or the garland and he wiggles a little, eyebrows going up when he feels something hard pressing against his thigh. “Uh. Your phone is poking at me.” 

Tony laughs a little and rests his head on Steve’s chest. “Yeah. Uhm.” He pulls his hips back. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine. Doesn’t bother me. It’s just a phone.” 

“You’re so naïve. Cute too.” Tony looks up at Steve. “That is not my phone.” 

Steve frowns, then as Tony keeps looking at him, he gets it and he blushes. “Oh. Sorry. I didn’t... I... Oh.” Steve can’t stop his body from responding to the idea of Tony getting an erection while pressed against him. He bites his lip, staring down at Tony. “You... Never mind. Just the predicament, right?” 

“You really think that? You think I just pop into every member of the Avenger’s apartment, even when I have to drive all the way to freaking Brooklyn?” 

Steve licks his lips. “What do you mean?” 

“You are so dense. Why do you turn me on so much? It literally makes no sense.”

“I...” Steve starts to smile. “Why did you bring me decorations?” 

“Because... I hate that you’re in Brooklyn and the rest of us are in Manhattan. I hate that I know you’re spending the holidays alone, because Wilson’s off with his mom, Natasha is with Bucky and Bucky is off finding himself. Clint is trying to reconcile with Coulson, and Scott is... I’m guessing with his daughter. I didn’t get you guys pardoned so you could be alone on fucking Christmas, Steve!” 

“Don’t saying fucking and Christmas together like that,” Steve says, mostly out of habit.

“Is this like the language thing? We’ve had this discussion. Hell, we’re still having that discussion.” 

Steve shakes his head. “You can swear. Just not those two together. Christmas is... special. It’s always been my favourite holiday.” 

“I thought the fourth of July was.” 

“You know, that’s not even my real birthday? I was born on the fifth of July at like one in the morning. I missed the fourth by an hour.” 

“I didn’t know that and you’re changing the subject!” 

“Yes, I was.” Steve lets out a sigh and leans into Tony a little. He slumps a bit, resting his cheek on the top of Tony’s head. “Fuck it. Mom loved Christmas. It was the one time of year she could give me something and I couldn’t refuse her and she knew it. Bucky too. I was a stubborn asshole.” 

“Was?” 

“Tony,” Steve whines a little. 

“Sorry. Go on.”

Steve sighs again. “I didn’t like them spending their money on me. My birthday was usually just a whatever day. I told them that as long as we got to the see the show on the fourth, I was happy. But Christmas, Mom and Bucky would go in together and get a bird of some kind-- usually chicken but it was still more protein than we usually had. They’d make mashed potatoes and stuffing-- we never wasted bread. Just dried what we couldn’t eat before it started to go back and put it away for another day. We’d sit around and sing Christmas carols and eat and each year, Mom and Bucky would get me a book I’d wanted to read. Same thing every year. Different book, but they’d always get me a book.” Steve wraps his arms around Tony as best he can and squeezes him gently. “The year after Mom passed, there was no book. Bucky told me he’d tried to scrounge up the money, but between my medications, which Mom had always paid for cheap by getting them from the hospital, and food on the table... There was nothing left. It wasn’t a huge deal, but. Anyhow, then the war happened. I was trying to enlist, Bucky joined up and... That was it. The war. The ice. My first Christmas back in the land of the awake, after New York, I sat in the room Shield had given me and basically threatened to punch anyone who dared interrupt me reading a book that Coulson had given me. The Lord of the Rings. I was so excited to have a book by an author I knew. He’d given me the set.”

Tony rubs his back, staying silent and Steve sinks further into him, not noticing as the garland and tinsel loosen and start to fall off. “Have you read them?” 

“You know they made movies, right?” 

“It’s not the same. The books... They sweep you up. Make you feel like you’re right there with Frodo and Sam, Merry and Pippen, Aragon, Boromir, Gimli, Legolas, and Gandalf. You get sucked in and...” Steve pulls back enough to smile at Tony. “The books are amazing.” 

“I know. I have read them. I just... the movies are really good too.” 

“They are. They’re good. But books are better. You can’t lose yourself in a move the way you can in a book.” Steve shrugs. “Anyhow, that was what I’d loved. Just being able to sit and read a book by an author I knew of. Then we were fighting Ultron. Then we were fighting each other. And now... I want my first real Christmas in this time to be something special.”

“Come to the tower. I’m not saying come live in the tower. Just... stay in the tower for the next week. You can help me decorate. We’ll do everyone’s floors in their signature colours. Except yours. Yours can be red and gold.” 

“My... my floor? I have a floor at the tower still?” 

“Of course you do. It’s your floor. I’m not going to take it away from you. Hell, even birdbrain has his own floor. The King of Wakanda has _his_ own floor.” Tony flushes just the slightest bit. “I even had a floor made for the one-armed wonder.” 

“Tony, why? You hate Bucky. You can barely stand Sam. You and I...” Steve licks his lips, finally getting back to the topic at hand. “Tony, why?” 

“You are as thick as a brick wall.” Tony reaches up, tangling his fingers in Steve’s hair and pulls him down for a kiss, slotting their mouths together until Steve is moaning and clutching at Tony. Tony pulls back after a moment, breathing heavily. “Obvious now?” 

“I want words, Tony,” Steve says, reaching up to rub his thumb over Tony’s bottom lip. “Though that was really nice.” 

“Just nice? I’ll have to do better next time.” Tony smiles and licks at Steve’s thumb. “Why? Because I’m stupidly in love with you.” 

Steve smiles, cheeks flushing. “Know why I wanted red and gold decorations? Why Nat told you that was what I wanted?” 

“Because red and gold is awesome together?” 

“Because they’re your colours. Because I wanted that reminder of you all over my apartment.” Steve ducks his head, resting his forehead against Tony’s. “Because, as Bucky puts it, I’m stupidly obsessed with all things Tony Stark. He also said to get over it and move on because you would never feel the same, but... he was wrong?” 

“He was so wrong. I don’t travel to Brooklyn for anyone. Except you. Even Peter, I make him come to me a lot of the time. And I certainly don’t bring him decorations for a tree or invite him to live in my tower.”

Steve grins and hugs Tony, lifting him off his feet. “After Christmas, I will move into the tower.” 

“Why after? I can hire someone to get you moved in today.” Tony smiles, feet still dangling off the floor. “Say yes and I’ll be on the phone in a heartbeat.” 

“Yes,” Steve says, kissing Tony before he can pull his phone out of his pocket. He pulls back, smiling. “I’ll go pack a bag. You pack up these decorations. I want this tree in my apartment. With your colours.” 

Tony beams and tugs his phone out of his pocket, calling some of his people while Steve heads into the bedroom to pack a couple of bags. When he comes back out, Tony is lifting up the bags of decorations. “Come on. Happy is coming with the movers. He’ll make sure everything gets moved. I’ve ordered you a real tree, instead of that fake thing you’ve got up. I’ve also taken the liberty of buying you a new bed. It’s a Christmas gift so you can’t say no!” Tony waves off Steve’s automatic rejection of the gift. “Nope. Can’t say no to a Christmas gift. Sorry.”

Steve frowns, but nods. “What size bed? I have a full.” 

“Uhm.” Tony pulls out his phone and types something in quickly. “Your new bed comes with sheets. Three sets. No argument.” Tony pulls Steve outside to his car, gesturing for Steve to put his bags in the trunk. He sets the decorations in the back seat and gets behind the wheel. “Anything you want for your new floor, let me know. Your stuff won’t fill it up, so if you need anything else, just let me know.”

“I won’t, because I am capable of buying my own furniture,” Steve says, frowning a little.

“I know you are.” Tony frowns back. “Steve, I want to do this for you. Please let me? Let me help you.” 

Steve bites his lip. “Well, I guess I could use an upgrade on my furniture. If you want to maybe find someplace to donate my old furniture to?” 

“Happily.” Tony beams and pulls over, pulling out his phone. “I’m going to text Happy right now and then text Pepper to order furniture.” 

“I want to pick out my own furniture, Tony.” Steve smiles and reaches over, easing the phone away from Tony. “With your help.” 

“Oh. Okay!” Tony smiles.

A week later, it’s Christmas Eve and the whole team is gathered in Steve’s living room, everyone gathered in groups. Tony clinks his glass-- sparkling cider has been passed around for everyone-- and smiles when the whole team turns to face him. He moves up beside Steve. “Steve and I would like to thank you all for joining us for our first ever team Christmas. It’s... Fuck it. I’m putting away that Tony Stark. It’s amazing having the team together and I’m glad everyone could make it. I’m glad we’re all a family again and I’ve missed you guys. Merry Christmas!” 

Steve leans over and kisses Tony’s temple before he echoes the Merry Christmas. He looks around and is thankful for everything he has in his life. He never thought he’d have a family again, and now he has an even bigger family than before.


End file.
